Assisted living services - Is it worth the cost?
In recent times, there has been a big push for assisted living services in India. Various factors like having better quality of life, having a solid support system for parents for those who are outside the country or need for medical assistance has made assisted living centers pretty valuable.
To understand the value of the service better, It is important to understand the various value elements - The cost and benefits of each of those components in detail. Then, we can appreciate the overall cost of the service.
What does an assisted living center offer?
- Stay
- Food
- 24*7 Medical Care
- Quicker access to emergency care
- A social group for the elders to engage with
- Regular activities for elders
Let's consider the cost of stay - If you take a single room with AC on rent in a city like coimbatore - It costs anywhere between 1500- 2000 / day. However, since it is for a long term basis,you can take 50% of the per day cost as a fair value. It easily comes to around Rs 750 / Day
Let's take food - As a sensitive individual it is extremely important to appreciate the unique dietary requirements of the elders. It is one of the most important components of elder care as it has a big impact on their overall health. In today’s fast paced world, balancing the requirements of day to day life and the unique needs of elders is a pretty challenging task. Handling the dietary needs from home is a poorer solution because of 2 reasons - One - There are compromises on the choices invariably - Two - In most cases the food is not customized to the exact dietary needs and taste pallets of the elders. If you look, take a good assisted living center- They invariably offer 3 meals and 3 snacks a day exactly tailored to the individual’s needs. It can easily come to Rs 500 / Day
Coming to the medical 24*7 medical assistance, It is absolutely impossible to offer quality services at home. Of Course - Home nurses can be a reasonably good solution. But, an assisted living facility can offer a whole lot of value added services like- regular Dr. Check Up, Access to physiotherapy based on requirement, availability of key medical equipment for handling emergency,constant monitoring of the medical condition. Today , cost of a home nurse in a city like coimbatore is anywhere between - Rs 700- 1000. In that too, there is a problem. It is not 24*7. So it is reasonable to take Rs 700 / Day as a fair value for the service
Now let's come to the engagement part - At a societal level, the families have become nuclear. With both husband and wife working and the kids going to school, elders spend most of their time alone.There is no one to talk to. More than the infrastructure, dietary and medical requirements, the need to talk and engage with someone on a regular basis is absolutely essential and it has a huge impact on their mental health. While it adds enormous value ,it is both unfair and not possible to put a number to it. So, wecan just say that the peer group and the social connections that assisted living centers provide is invaluable.
Now, just adding up all the costs - It comes to around 1950/ Day taking just the minimum amount which is approximately 60,000/Month. Now,due to the scale advantages the centers have, they are able to offer the services at a much lower cost. A good assisted living facility with all the parameters discussed above charge anywhere between 40,000 - 50,000 in a city like coimbatore. If an assisted living center is able to provide these services at a lower cost, it is a really good deal.You should go for it!!
